Comparison guide·Evaluation shortlists·Updated Jul 18, 2026
Recurly vs Stampli: subscription recovery or supplier invoice control?
Recurly runs subscription billing, payment orchestration, dunning, recovery, subscriber lifecycle, analytics, and revenue recognition. Stampli runs invoice capture, coding, matching, collaboration, approvals, vendor management, payments, reconciliation, and ERP-aligned AP.
What's insideMoney flowOnboardingCompliancePayout opsIntegrationsReportingTime to launchPricing
Recurly
recurly.com
vs
Stampli
www.stampli.com
The verdict
Start with the job you are actually buying for
These products sit in different categories. Compare the record each one starts from, the team that operates it, the handoffs it creates, and the output finance needs.
Recurly
recurly.comPrimary focus
- · Subscription businesses that prioritize failed-payment recovery, dunning, churn reduction, and subscriber lifecycle management
- · Digital subscriptions, media, software, and consumer services teams that need gateway flexibility and retention tooling
- · Finance teams that want Recurly billing plus Revenue Recognition Standalone for ASC 606 / IFRS 15 workflows
vs
Stampli
www.stampli.comPrimary focus
- · AP teams that want invoice-centered collaboration, approval routing, and audit history without reworking the ERP
- · Finance teams with complex approver chains, POs, vendor records, and multi-entity invoice processing
- · Organizations that want Stampli Direct Pay with ACH, check, virtual card, and international payments tied to ERP validation
Executive TL;DR
Recurly helps revenue teams act on customer invoices, failed charges, renewals, recovery, and churn.
Stampli helps AP teams act on supplier invoices, coding questions, purchase-order matches, approvals, payments, and ERP reconciliation.
Both manage invoice-related operations, but one collects subscriber revenue and the other pays supplier liabilities.
Customer invoice vs supplier invoice
The same document name hides two opposing finance processes
A subscription invoice drives collection and recovery; a supplier invoice drives review, approval, payment, and AP close.
Recurly asks what happened to the charge
Subscriber, plan, gateway, invoice, payment attempt, retry, dunning, recovery, renewal, churn, and revenue treatment remain connected.
Stampli asks what happened to the bill
Vendor, invoice capture, coding, matching, purchase order, approver discussion, payment, history, and ERP reconciliation remain connected.
Ownership follows cash direction
Billing and revenue teams operate Recurly’s subscriber lifecycle. AP and accounting teams operate Stampli’s vendor invoice and payment lifecycle.
Procurement snapshot
The differences that actually show up in evaluation
Axis
Money flow & contracting
Subscriber lifecycle → invoice/payment attempt → dunning/retry/recovery →…
Supplier invoice → coding / matching → approval…
Integrations
Payment gateways, tax, CRM, analytics, data, accounting, and…
Pre-built ERP and accounting integrations are central to…
Time to launch
Scope the launch around gateways, catalog and subscriber…
Scope the launch around the ERP connector, invoice…
Pricing model
Public packaging centers on Subscriptions, Commerce, Engage, and…
Confirm packaging against invoice volume, module scope, ERP…
Short phrases summarize the full cells below. Scroll the full table for detail, source links, and proof-request nuance.
Feature-by-feature comparison
Six practical questions to take into demos and procurement. Use the same workflow and inputs with both vendors, then compare what your team would actually have to operate.
| Capability | | |
|---|---|---|
What it is Primary product category and core job it solves. | Subscription management platform for billing, payment orchestration, revenue recovery, analytics, subscriber lifecycle, and revenue recognition. | AP automation platform for invoice capture, coding, matching, collaboration, approvals, vendor management, payments, reconciliation, and ERP integrations. |
Best for Team size, program type, and workflow shape where each product fits. | Digital subscriptions, consumer services, streaming/media, software, and commerce teams where dunning, payment recovery, and retention are central. | AP teams that need invoice-centered collaboration and approval control while keeping the ERP as system of record. |
Money flow & contracting Who invoices, who collects, and how funds travel from source to recipient. | Subscriber lifecycle → invoice/payment attempt → dunning/retry/recovery → renewal or churn workflow. Subscriber-side only; no MoR invoicing or payee payouts. | Supplier invoice → coding / matching → approval discussion → payment execution → ERP reconciliation. Client collection and external payout release are distinct categories. |
Integrations APIs, webhooks, imports, exports, and the systems each product needs around it. | Payment gateways, tax, CRM, analytics, data, accounting, and e-commerce integrations. Validate how each system participates in billing close and churn operations. | Pre-built ERP and accounting integrations are central to the product. Integration is optimized for AP objects and ERP reconciliation, not client-funded payee-source ingestion. |
Reporting & reconciliation Export packages, ledger records, and audit trails your finance team closes the books with. | Revenue recovery, subscriber analytics, renewal and churn reporting, and RevRec outputs. Reconciliation is subscriber-revenue shaped, not payout-source shaped. | Invoice conversation, approval history, payment evidence, and ERP sync support AP close. Payout-program reconciliation needs different source and recipient artifacts. |
Pricing model Fee structure overview. Vendor terms change often, so confirm pricing during your evaluation. | Public packaging centers on Subscriptions, Commerce, Engage, and RevRec. Validate TPV/GMV, contract length, recovery products, RevRec, gateways, and implementation services. | Confirm packaging against invoice volume, module scope, ERP environment, user count, implementation services, and payment-method fees. |
What it is
Primary product category and core job it solves.
- Recurly
- Subscription management platform for billing, payment orchestration, revenue recovery, analytics, subscriber lifecycle, and revenue recognition.
- Stampli
- AP automation platform for invoice capture, coding, matching, collaboration, approvals, vendor management, payments, reconciliation, and ERP integrations.
Best for
Team size, program type, and workflow shape where each product fits.
- Recurly
- Digital subscriptions, consumer services, streaming/media, software, and commerce teams where dunning, payment recovery, and retention are central.
- Stampli
- AP teams that need invoice-centered collaboration and approval control while keeping the ERP as system of record.
Money flow & contracting
Who invoices, who collects, and how funds travel from source to recipient.
- Recurly
- Subscriber lifecycle → invoice/payment attempt → dunning/retry/recovery → renewal or churn workflow. Subscriber-side only; no MoR invoicing or payee payouts.
- Stampli
- Supplier invoice → coding / matching → approval discussion → payment execution → ERP reconciliation. Client collection and external payout release are distinct categories.
Integrations
APIs, webhooks, imports, exports, and the systems each product needs around it.
- Recurly
- Payment gateways, tax, CRM, analytics, data, accounting, and e-commerce integrations. Validate how each system participates in billing close and churn operations.
- Stampli
- Pre-built ERP and accounting integrations are central to the product. Integration is optimized for AP objects and ERP reconciliation, not client-funded payee-source ingestion.
Reporting & reconciliation
Export packages, ledger records, and audit trails your finance team closes the books with.
- Recurly
- Revenue recovery, subscriber analytics, renewal and churn reporting, and RevRec outputs. Reconciliation is subscriber-revenue shaped, not payout-source shaped.
- Stampli
- Invoice conversation, approval history, payment evidence, and ERP sync support AP close. Payout-program reconciliation needs different source and recipient artifacts.
Pricing model
Fee structure overview. Vendor terms change often, so confirm pricing during your evaluation.
- Recurly
- Public packaging centers on Subscriptions, Commerce, Engage, and RevRec. Validate TPV/GMV, contract length, recovery products, RevRec, gateways, and implementation services.
- Stampli
- Confirm packaging against invoice volume, module scope, ERP environment, user count, implementation services, and payment-method fees.
Use this as a structured starting point, then verify current product scope with Recurly and Stampli against your own workflow.
Take this into your procurement call
Five questions that surface the meaningful fit differences between vendors.
- 1Name the business job, starting record, and team that will own the workflow.
- 2Ask Recurly to demonstrate one normal run and one exception using your inputs.
- 3Ask Stampli to run the same scenario so the comparison stays fair.
- 4Compare onboarding, handoffs, exception ownership, support, and the final finance export.
- 5Confirm current pricing, coverage, integrations, and contract scope directly with each vendor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Stampli manage customer subscriptions?+
No. Stampli handles supplier AP and does not manage plans, customer invoices, gateways, dunning, renewals, recovery, churn, or subscription analytics.
Can Recurly automate supplier AP?+
No. Recurly does not capture and code supplier invoices, manage purchase-order matching, route AP approvals, execute vendor payments, or reconcile those payments to an ERP.
Which product owns revenue recognition?+
Recurly offers Revenue Recognition as part of its subscription product set. Stampli focuses on invoice and payment records for AP close rather than subscriber revenue schedules.
How should finance connect the two record sets?+
Map Recurly customers, subscriptions, invoices, payment attempts, recovery events, and revenue records separately from Stampli vendors, bills, approvals, payments, and ERP entries.
If you are switching over
- 01Map the records, identifiers, balances, statuses, and exports your current process depends on before choosing a migration path.
- 02Give Recurly and Stampli the same representative workflow, including an incomplete record and a failed or changed transaction.
- 03Assign an owner to every handoff and exception so gaps do not disappear between product demos.
- 04Run a parallel close before retiring the existing process, then compare the operational and finance outputs side by side.
Sources and references
8 references: click to expand
Recurly and Stampli are trademarks of their respective owners. This independent comparison is not endorsed by either vendor.
Connect the Recurly vs Stampli decision to the rest of your money flow
If your shortlist also needs client collection, controlled payout release, and finance-ready reconciliation, see where Gruv fits around the vendors you are evaluating.